


Beloved

by canvasghost



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: And oh he will, Asking everyone but Byleth, Claude's caught some feels, Did I mention pining?, Eventual canon-compliant character death, F/M, He's just gotta realize it, Pining, Slightly alternate universe in which Byleth keeps Jeralt's ring on her after he shows it to her, mild jealousy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-15
Updated: 2019-10-18
Packaged: 2020-12-31 01:44:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21039122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canvasghost/pseuds/canvasghost
Summary: Teach has begun to wear a ring on a chain around her neck, and Claude needs to know why.Purely for curiosity reasons--Claude loves getting to the bottom of a good secret. That's all this is and nothing more. It's not like he's obsessed with it or anything. It's not like his own chest hurts every time he sees her tuck the offending object against her own chest.Yes. Curiosity reasons only.





	1. Distraction

### 

It was a routine bandit mission. Raphael and Hilda led their fellow Deer further into the enemy encampment, Raphael’s muscles glistening nearly as brightly as Hilda’s hair in the sun. Claude and Ignatz were close behind, followed by Marianne and Lysithea. 

Teach-Byleth-lingered between the archers and the mages. She had been holding back lately, Claude had noticed, letting her students pave their own way on the battlefield. She was always ready to bark out a command or step in should there be trouble, but she trusted them now. She trusted their reasoning and their actions—she trusted their skills. 

Still, those moments of trouble were hard to predict, but his Teach’s eagle eye always seemed to catch them in the nick of time. The Deer trusted her just as soundly, if not more so, as she trusted them.

Claude’s heart swelled with pride as he thought of this trust. His rowdy house of misfits had really unified as a team, and quite the formidable one at that. After a quick glance around, he half turned to flash a grin at the one responsible for it all.

Byleth was already darting past him, sword in hand.

Claude immediately cocked an arrow, sweeping his gaze around the immediate vicinity. 

_There._

Raphael and Hilda had drifted a little too far from each other. As Raphael’s fists pounded an enemy archer, Hilda’s axe was descending on a heavily armored bandit. A mage charged out from the nearby underbrush, arms circling in mid-incantation, aiming at Hilda’s back.

“Hilda, dodge right! Claude, to your left!”

But Claude’s gaze did not go to his left. Byleth’s words rang out as she raised her own sword against the bandit taking aim at Hilda. Something had fallen out from inside her shirt as she’d ran, and with the upward swing of her arms, the chained object jumped and glinted in the light.

It was a ring. Teach, _his Teach_, was wearing a _ring_ around her neck.

Blood rushed in his ears. His feet rooted to the ground. His eyes were transfixed on the bizarrely offending object, watching it bounce with the power of Byleth’s strike.

Then, a strike hit his own side.

Marianne called out his name. A flash of purple and black exploded in his peripheral. He finally looked down, _looked away_, and saw an arrow sticking out of his thigh.

He looked up again, and saw his Teach, staring at him with wide eyes. If Claude had to guess, he would almost say she looked more confused than shocked, but with Teach it was always hard to tell.

Marianne was beside him now, talking gently. Ignatz had fallen back to guard Claude and the blue-haired healer alongside Lysithea. Byleth’s face became neutral once again, the grim set of her mouth the only indicator of her displeasure. She gave the four a curt nod before turning to join with Raphael and Hilda in the front lines. There were only a couple of bandits left.

“—fessor warned you, Claude! What were you doing?” Lysithea was lecturing as Marianne’s white magic soothed his wound, but he wasn’t paying attention.

Because ever so gently, right as she’d turned, Teach had tucked the ring back inside her shirt. Her fist had lingered over her heart for just an extra fraction of a second, but Claude had noticed the minuscule pause.

Any pause from Teach, especially on the battlefield, was a significant one.

Claude didn’t understand: if he’d taken a hit to the leg, then why did it feel as though the wind had been knocked out of him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just finished the Golden Deer route of Three Houses, and I am in love with the entire Golden Deer house. Hilda and Marianne? #soulmates change my mind. Ignatz with literally every other character's support scenes? What an absolute sweetheart. Lorenz's character growth, especially with Leonie? My. Goodness. RAPHAEL AND FLAYN? CAN I GET A HELL YEAH (H'YAAAAAH!)?
> 
> Okay, I'm done gushing now.
> 
> That all aside, I really like the relationship between Claude and Byleth. **This will be a short story with short chapters, I'm thinking approximately 5 in total.** This first chapter was relatively spoiler-free, but going forward there will be spoilers to about chapter 9/10 (when Claude asks for a certain diary). This story will be a pine-y, realization-of-feelings-centric tale that will end once Claude finds out the story of Byleth's ring.
> 
> Future stories? Who knows, perhaps this will become a collection. I certainly have at least two other fleshed out ideas I'd love to properly write! We shall see what the future brings :) But until then, I sincerely hope you enjoyed my little fictlet.


	2. Young

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Manuela examines Claude. Claude has an existential crisis about his youth.

### 

Lucky. It’s what Manuela called him in the infirmary after the Deer’s return to Garreg Mach. Claude laid on the examination table with a towel over his waist, watching as Manuela assessed his wound.

“You were lucky to be hit on your outer thigh,” she tells him, procuring a small jar of salve from a nearby shelf. “There’s a major artery nearby. Red really isn’t your colour, Claude. Let’s keep it that way.”

"You wound me, professor," Claude replies, feigning indignance. "I happen to know I look striking in crimson.”

Manuela’s lips curve into a smile as she applies the salve, but her eyes do not leave her work. “Your leg, I can heal, but your eyes may be too damaged for even my skills.”

Byleth lets out a soft chuckle. She stands behind the privacy screen that blocks off Claude from the rest of the room. Claude can't see her, but finds himself wishing he could. Her smile is a rare thing, and her laughter even rarer.

"Sheesh, it's my ego that's worst off now," Claude fake pouts.

He wonders if she's still smiling. He hopes she is.

"I'm afraid you're a little too young for me to help with that," Manuela quips with a smirk.

Byleth chuckles again. But this time... this time, Claude doesn't like it. Young. He's not _that_ young.

"I'm practically the same age as Teach," he finds himself saying. Manuela raises an eyebrow at him as she wipes her hands on a nearby cloth. "And you can't be much older than Teach, yourself."

Manuela smiles. Claude’s glad he managed to form a compliment out of his initial reaction. He’s not sure where the words came from exactly, but they’d bubbled up and out before he could even process them.

"Such a little charmer," Manuela coos before walking towards the privacy screen. "You can put on your pants now. I'm all done." 

Heat rises to Claude's cheeks as Manuela disappears around the screen. Had the conversation been any different, he would've reveled in the innuendo. He loved a good banter, especially an inappropriate one, and Manuela could really hold her own in such a conversation. 

But this felt different, somehow. It didn't feel flirtatious; in fact it felt…almost demeaning. He feels like a little boy being told to put his pants back on. He feels young.

He wonders if Teach is still smiling. He really hopes she isn't. 

“Your healer did an exceptional job,” he can hear Manuela saying past the screen. “All I did was apply a topical ointment to prevent infection. The wound may scar, but there will be no permanent damage otherwise.”

“Marianne was Claude’s healer,” Byleth replies. There’s a warmth to her usual monotone, and Claude wonders if Manuela can see the pride on Teach’s face. It was hard to spot sometimes, but Claude was sure it was there. Claude knew Teach had a soft spot for Marianne and that the pair had been focusing on her white magic recently. Teach wasn’t one to brag, but she always gave credit where credit was due.

Something twists in Claude’s stomach. Teach was… she was quite maternal towards them, the Deer, if he thought about it. Her gentle but strict guidance. Her quiet pride. Her worry when one of them got hurt. Teach always attended Manuela’s assessments every time there was an injury. Every. Single. Time.

It was obvious to all of the Deer that Teach cared, despite her blink-and-you’ll-miss-it emotional range. But what kind of care was it—was it maternal? Did Teach actually view them all as children?

Did she view Claude as…

His stomach lurches again and he hastily does up his waistband. Plastering a smile on to his face, he saunters around the privacy screen and winks at the two professors. 

“Ladies,” he says smoothly, ignoring the knots in his intestines. “I apologize for all the fuss I caused the both of you. Thank you for everything.”

He bows, ever the performer, and turns in hopes of beelining it to the door. He doesn’t know what’s going on inside him—in his stomach, in his mind, in his chest, wait, when did that start hurting?—but he does know he needs to leave. It’s been a strange day, perhaps he just needs to eat something--

A hand grips his forearm.

“Claude, wait.”

His stomach, at least, stops wiggling. In fact, it bottoms out entirely at the sound of Byleth’s voice. 

“What can I do for you, Teach?” he asks in what he hopes is an upbeat tone, turning back toward her. 

Manuela has disappeared around the privacy screen. Claude can hear her begin to strip the table he’d lied on. Byleth lets go of his arm as he turns, and she’s looking away from him, clearly uncomfortable.

“Hey,” Claude says softly, feeling the sudden mood shift. He feels the desire to lift her chin, and immediately tucks his fingers into his palms. “What’s wrong?”

“I wanted to… apologize,” Byleth starts quietly, still looking away. “I miscalculated on the battlefield today. I’d thought Hilda was the only one in danger and I reacted with only that threat in mind.”

“Eh, you warned me, didn’t you?” Claude asks, tilting his head to try and catch her eye. “If anything, I should be apologizing to you for not following orders.”

Byleth frowns, and finally meets his eyes.

“No. I miscalculated. If I’d considered the archer to be a threat, I could’ve gone for him myself. You could’ve handled the mage from long-range, and we wouldn’t be in the infirmary right now.”

“I mean, I guess,” Claude says slowly, putting his hands behind his head. “But really, I should’ve gotten that guy no problem. You had no way of knowing I…” Claude falters. He what? Byleth’s eyes feel like holes burning into his soul. He can’t tell her he was distracted by her ring, could he? 

Byleth frown deepens, and her eyes become sad.

“I miscalculated,” she says again. “And you were hurt because of my error.”

“Awh, Teach,” Claude half-laughs, half-sighs. The pain in his chest has morphed into a strange, tingly sensation. “I’m fine, look!” He hops on his injured leg, flashing a grin. “Just like Manuela said, Marianne did an _exceptional_ job.”

Byleth’s face does not change as she looks away once more. Claude’s grin fades. His fists uncurl, and while he doesn’t touch her chin, he gently reaches out to brush his fingers against her own.

“Besides,” he leans in to whisper, for he is certain Manuela is eavesdropping, “I’d take an arrow for you any day.”

Byleth’s gaze snaps back to his. Her frown is gone, her mouth softening in surprise. The tingling in Claude’s chest explodes into hot electricity, coursing from where his fingers touch Byleth’s down to his toes. They stare at each other for an agonizing minute, and Claude has never felt less like a child in his life.

Suddenly, she steps back, unconsciously raising her hand to her chest. 

To the place where he knows her ring is tucked away.

His stomach is in knots again, but he continues to feel the electric heat hum throughout the rest of his body. He realizes he’s still leaning towards her, like a flower drawn to the sun.

“You’ve had a long day,” she says, and she won’t look at him again. “You should go get something to eat before the dining hall closes.”

Claude blinks, once, twice. He straightens, throwing his hands behind his head once more.

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” he replies casually, but he can’t control the beating of his heart.

Byleth nods, a sign Claude knows as a dismissal, and he turns to go. Just before he passes through the infirmary doors, he turns back to say one last thing before stopping short.

For Byleth has pulled out her ring, gently running it up and down it’s chain while continuing to stare at the floor.

Claude swallowed the words in his throat, physically feeling them force their way down, down, down into his stomach as it continued to churn.

Teach was right. He just needed to eat. He proceeded out of the infirmary door without a second glance back. He was sure once there was something in his stomach, he’d start to feel better; that was the only reason why his footsteps were quickened as he walked to the dining hall. 

The only reason, indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who commented, left kudos, and/or bookmarked the first chapter! Your support has really brightened my week :)
> 
> Initially, Manuela's assessment was a blurb before Claude going to the dining hall (which was what chapter 2 was initially going to be: dining hall conversations). But then it transformed into this, and I enjoyed it, so I hope you all enjoyed it as well!


End file.
